Programming, Gear-Shifting, and The Zone

Posted by Rampant Coyote on July 9, 2012

One of the things I need to get better at as an indie is shifting gears. Or, more correctly, task-switching. As an indie, I don’t have the luxury of specialization, or concentrating on any one task for too long. I have to be agile. I have to wear lots of hats. It gets very, very […]

Filed Under: Production, Programming - Comments: 5 Comments to Read

On Wandering Monsters and Unplanned Encounters – Revisited

Posted by Rampant Coyote on July 2, 2012

A few years ago, I wrote in the defense of “wandering monsters” and semi-random encounters in RPGs. My opinion hasn’t changed too much, though I do have a bit more hindsight experience today (both as a player and game developer). While we often refer to them as “random encounters” (or, in the old days of […]

Filed Under: Design - Comments: 9 Comments to Read

Are RPGs Too Long?

Posted by Rampant Coyote on June 28, 2012

I feel a little heretical asking this question, in an age when $60 mainstream games have been cut down to 12 hours (or less) of gameplay (“But we make up for it in multiplayer!”). In discussing turn-based versus action-based RPGs with a friend and fellow Frayed Knights developer Xenovore (much more of a fan of […]

Filed Under: Design - Comments: 26 Comments to Read

IP Rights – Why Are They Are Important to Indie Game Developers? Part 2

Posted by Rampant Coyote on June 13, 2012

So yesterday I prefaced the whole “IP rights” thing with a story about a non-indie publisher. My feeling – echoed by most within the indie arena, but apparently not all – is that owning your own IP is a “necessary but not sufficient” aspect of your game being indie. But even within that, there’s a […]

Filed Under: Biz, Indie Evangelism, Production - Comments: 2 Comments to Read

How to Tell a Story – Pixar Style

Posted by Rampant Coyote on June 11, 2012

Just one o’ those links I feel compelled to share. Here are 22 “Rules” of storytelling according to Pixar – which hasn’t made a movie I haven’t liked yet (or that hasn’t made bajillions of dollars).  Via Pixar employee Emma Coats, here’s the little nuggets of wisdom she’s picked up from the studio: The 22 […]

Filed Under: Design - Comments: 5 Comments to Read

Don’t Know Much About History…

Posted by Rampant Coyote on June 6, 2012

On the way to Le Havre from Paris, we stopped in the city of Rouen and visited a little Joan of Arc museum there. Rouen was where Joan was executed back in 1431, and this year marks her 600th birthday. I picked up some interesting tidbits about her and her era that I didn’t know, […]

Filed Under: Game Development - Comments: 9 Comments to Read

National Game Development Month

Posted by Rampant Coyote on June 1, 2012

I think this should be “International Game Development Month.” But as it’s obviously riffing on “National Novel Writing Month” (or goofily abbreviated “NaNoWriMo”), I guess that’s the name that is (currently) sticking. Anyway – the idea is to make June the month that you make your game. Or games. To start and finish that idea […]

Filed Under: Game Development, Indie Evangelism - Comments: 4 Comments to Read

Six Ways to Avoid “Development Paralysis”

Posted by Rampant Coyote on May 22, 2012

There’s a term called “Analysis Paralysis” where the final decision is long-delayed while an analysis and deliberation of options goes far beyond a reasonable amount of time. While there’s a lot of discussion about it, what it really comes down to is fear – fear of making the wrong decision. By putting off a decision, […]

Filed Under: Game Development, Programming - Comments: 4 Comments to Read

RPG Design: Capturing More of the Tabletop Experience

Posted by Rampant Coyote on May 18, 2012

Computer RPGs began, in part, as a way for D&D players to enjoy a taste of their game without the difficulty of getting a bunch of people together at the same place and time to game. Been there, done that. If it weren’t for our regular Saturday-night games, It’d be only the occasional Thanksgiving or […]

Filed Under: Design - Comments: 5 Comments to Read

Diablo. Or How To Quit Talking About It and Actually Do It.

Posted by Rampant Coyote on May 15, 2012

So I hear there’s some kind of action-RPG that was just released today? Kind of a niche action-roguelike or something? I hope their budget was small, because those kinds of games just don’t sell… Seriously, though, I’m a big fan of the first two Diablo games. The reasons I’m holding off on picking up the […]

Filed Under: Game Development, Retro - Comments: 5 Comments to Read

Older RPGs: Not That Hard To Play After All?

Posted by Rampant Coyote on April 24, 2012

Hat tip to GameBanshee for linking this article from Joystiq: “The Surprising Accessibility of Older RPGs” The author (Rowan Kaiser) isn’t really giving a pass for all older RPGs. Specifically, he’s referring to Might & Magic III: Isles of Terra. This was actually my (brief) introduction to the Might & Magic series, many years ago. […]

Filed Under: Design - Comments: 5 Comments to Read

Ludum Dare #23 Game Dev Competition Starts Off With a Bang!

Posted by Rampant Coyote on April 20, 2012

Ludum Dare has been going on for ten years. In a few hours, the latest game-in-48-hours competition will begin. The keynote for this competition – #23 – is exceptional. Chevy Ray doesn’t just give a ra-ra speech… he leads by example. Kind of. It’s just funny and cool. Chevy Ray’s LD#23 Keynote For another amusing […]

Filed Under: Game Development, Indie Evangelism - Comments: Comments are off for this article

Using Genetic Algorithms In Games

Posted by Rampant Coyote on April 18, 2012

Because my upcoming post on my experiences developing Jet Moto is getting kinda long, I thought I’d break out this story for your entertainment. Programmers will especially get a kick out of it. An interesting aspect of the development of Jet Moto was that we did not do anything like the traditional racing game approach. […]

Filed Under: Design, Game Development, Programming - Comments: 6 Comments to Read

Bugging Out

Posted by Rampant Coyote on April 11, 2012

I have a book that was (or still is) used as a textbook for air-to-air combat for fighter pilots. Parts of the book talk about how to exit combat. It’s not an easy thing, actually. In general, if you wait until you really need to escape, it’s too late. I’ve also been reading about the […]

Filed Under: Design - Comments: 7 Comments to Read

The Game Jam Survival Guide

Posted by Rampant Coyote on April 9, 2012

I suck at game jams. Yes, I know, I even wrote an article about a game-in-a-week experience once upon a time, and I have found I need to review my own article and take my own advice. I think a lot of my failings in the game jam setting are the same failings I have […]

Filed Under: Game Development, Indie Evangelism - Comments: Read the First Comment

A Game Dev’s Story, Part IX: King of the World

Posted by Rampant Coyote on April 3, 2012

(You can catch up on the whole story here.) So the last time I left off, we were knee-deep in the development of Twisted Metal and Warhawk. While massive crunch-mode hours and stuff sounds cool and everything, and I was still thrilled at having the kind of job I’d dreamed about since my first confused […]

Filed Under: A Game Dev's Story, Game Development, Retro - Comments: 11 Comments to Read



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